


alki, by & by

by illihee



Category: Hetalia: Axis Powers
Genre: a lot of these are going to be super super gay, colin has feelings about leaves 2k18, most will revolve around nature somehow
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-12-02
Updated: 2018-12-02
Packaged: 2019-09-05 14:14:48
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 786
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16812283
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/illihee/pseuds/illihee
Summary: another anthology of prominent memories, this time for colin. to be updated semi-frequently.





	alki, by & by

˚ ༘ 🌲 ⋆｡˚ ✦

_ note: this memory features personal indigenous names & some untranslated kinship words from indigenous languages.  
please do not repeat the names if you have no intention of using them respectfully. _

_  
  
  
_   


⠀⠀  
⠀⠀ ⠀— ? ? ? ? :  
⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀✧ Some year before Europeans.  
⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀He doesn’t remember the Gregorian  
⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀year; just that it was during kwas-  
⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀put’hl, the woodworking season.

“It looks nice for your first canoe. You’ve been watching the men carve carefully, haven’t you?”  
⠀⠀  
Mussel shell knives and beaver tooth chisels rested against the ground, covered in chips of wood. Red cedar dust permeated the air, giving off a sweet scent that reminded Taima faintly of his sleeping mat. Qwadit sat nearby with her legs folded beneath her, blanket hanging off her frame. Though moving around consistently as he perfected the ornamental carvings of his first canoe kept him warm, it was in fact cold outside, and the wool padding of his woven dress was probably keeping him from realizing that.  
⠀⠀  
“I watched a little bit,” he admitted, running his fingers through his hair to rid it of whatever fine powdered cedar came to settle in his curls. “I wanted to surprise Hohoe when we meet again.”  
Qwadit smiled and rose to her feet, stepping gingerly over the scattered tools as she made her way towards the boy. “I’m sure he’ll be proud of you, haawilatl. You did a wonderful job.”  
The way his mother’s black hair fanned out and fell over her shoulders like thick, long curtains to his sides as she leaned over to kiss his forehead made Taima think of the wings of a raven; fitting, for their family considered the trickster their ancestor of origin. While he raised his arms to lovingly pap Qwadit’s cheeks, he hoped Raven could feel his fondness for him through her, as well.  
⠀⠀  
“Now, let’s see how well it does in the water. If all goes smoothly, you can help us collect rockfish soon.” The woman stood straight again and pat his back before parting to her own canoe, positioned just at the edge of the water, longer and a smidge wider and painted intricately in reds, whites, and greens. Excitedly Taima nodded and ran around to the bow of his canoe, pulling it out of the grass and into the sand, towards the shoreline where the cool sea lapped against Qwadit’s ankles.  
Once they were lined up – Taima’s little craft looked rather cute compared to the majestic and far more professional adult canoe – they launched their maritime companions into the water together, Qwadit with a bit more ease than her son. As soon as his canoe steadied, he hopped in, one leg slowly over the side at a time until he managed to plop down in the middle of the hollow.  
⠀⠀  
By the time he picked up his paddle, Qwadit was already a few feet out ahead of him, shifted back to the stern of her canoe and grinning expectantly at him. “Can you paddle out here?”  
Taima glanced left and right at the calm surface of the water, unsure of which side to go for first; feeling a slight breeze pass to his right, he opted for that as a sign and dipped his paddle in, pushing himself gently away from land.  
⠀⠀  
“Umiiqsu, there aren’t any fish we can catch today?”  
Qwadit laughed and shook her head, arms folded along the well-worn wooden edge.  
“No, we have to wait a while longer. We can’t take them before they have a chance to grow. You wouldn’t want anyone snatching you up from your home before you’re ready, would you?”  
Taima made a noise of disagreement, looking out across the sea at the gray-green island in the distance where Hohoe lived. Lost in thought, he paddled leisurely to his mom’s side, though it was the splash of a raindrop hitting the tip of his nose that ended his daze and not the hand that reached out to stop him from floating by.  
⠀⠀  
She picked something up from in front of her, where the fish baskets sat snugly, and placed on his head a hat that nearly hid his verdant eyes from view. “You forgot your hat.”  
More drops fell from the cloudy sky and rolled down its curve, further sparing him from the sting of chilly rain.  
His hat was a comfort item indeed, but he wouldn’t have minded being caught in the downpour. He was born in the rain, took his first steps in the rain...it only made sense if he were to make his first journey across the water in the rain.  
⠀⠀  
Now would not be the time, for his mother cared too much, but he would come to associate the rain with more than one soul-searching canoe journey in his life.


End file.
